


Her Little Rhae of Sunshine

by sansakatara



Category: A Song of Ice and Fire - George R. R. Martin, Game of Thrones (TV)
Genre: Character Study, Elia Martell Deserves Better, House Martell, House Targaryen, POV Elia Martell, Period-Typical Racism
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-07
Updated: 2020-03-07
Packaged: 2021-02-28 19:15:06
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 877
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23052295
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sansakatara/pseuds/sansakatara
Summary: However, while she might not have picked it, she grew to love it anyway; just as she could not help but love the daughter the Mother had blessed her with.
Relationships: Elia Martell & Aerys II Targayen, Elia Martell & Doran Martell, Elia Martell & Oberyn Martell, Elia Martell & Rhaenys Targaryen (Daughter of Elia), Elia Martell/Rhaegar Targaryen
Comments: 4
Kudos: 29





	Her Little Rhae of Sunshine

HER LITTLE RHAE OF SUNSHINE  
A/N: A little one-shot dedicated to the beautiful Elia of Dorne and her daughter. 

Elia had wanted to name their daughter Meria.  
Part of that longing had to do with Dorne. Since marrying Rhaegar, she had missed her home more than she anticipated. One could not say that the ancestral seat of the dragons lacked either strength or rich history. It was after all, the place from where Aegon I had sailed from to begin his conquest of the seven kingdoms that were now one. The place where the Targaryen’s had fled due to Aegon’s ancestor Daenys having a prophetic dream about the destruction of Valyria. Doran said it was more likely that Daenys’ father Aenar had fallen into trouble and therefore thought exile a more appealing alternative than execution, while Oberyn laughed and said if he were to have a daughter such as this, he would have no need of sons. But Dragonstone was a place still grim, the castle wrought in black stone and with a plethora of dragon architecture throughout. Ultimately, it felt a place far removed from the lightness and warmth of Sunspear. 

So, what better solution than to give their little princess a name that would remind Elia of her beloved homeland every time she used it? A name that invoked memories of the hot, arid air, beautiful sand steeds and countless hours playing with Oberyn in the Water Gardens as a child. Of hearing her people’s distinctive tongue and songs; proud and vibrant. A name that would remind Elia of her pride to be of Dorne, and how she hoped her dear little one would also share her pride to have that same blood running through her veins.  
But duty had seen her marry Prince Rhaegar in the Sept of Baelor, and it was duty which meant she had to accept the name he had given their daughter- Rhaenys.  
She had not liked it. To Elia, it seemed an unlucky name. There had been two other Rhaenys that shared her daughter’s name she knew. One a queen and one that might have been; both whom met violent ends in conflict. But duty and being bedridden besides saw her accept her husband’s choice. 

However, while she might not have picked it, she grew to love it anyway; just as she could not help but love the daughter the Mother had blessed her with. In a way she had gotten her wish to give Rhaenys a name that reminded her of Dorne. For although she was Targaryen in name, she had the look of a Martell; born with dark hair and brown eyes.  
Perhaps it was her daughter’s look that caused King Aery’s reaction. Tradition meant that when the time came, Rhaegar would present his child to the court. Normally, this would be done when the child was three months old- however Elia’s health meant that it was almost half a year before they left Dragonstone for the court of King Aerys II.  
The presentation of Rhaenys saw her embraced by Queen Rhaella, but Aerys had refused to hold his own granddaughter. “She smells Dornish”, was His Grace’s justification. Dornish. He had said it in such a disparaging tone, as if Rhaenys’ Dornish blood somehow tainted her- despite the fact that it had been Aerys who had accepted a match between his heir and a daughter of Dorne. He said it as if Rhaenys was beneath him. Elia had hated him for it- was it not the Dornish after all, who alone did not bow when the dragons first came? Who only eventually joined this realm through a marriage treaty proposed by Daeron the Good?  
But it would not do to say anything to this king; particularly a king such as Aerys.

But since that moment, Elia had made sure to dress Rhaenys in the colours of House Targaryen. Every time the court would see Princess Rhaenys in red and black, they would remember. They would remember that this was Rhaegar’s heir, and if the Mother meant for her to never to give Rhaegar another child (in this case, a son) it would be Rhaenys who would rule the seven kingdoms. It would not matter that Rhaegar had a younger brother Viserys who as of now was all of five- Rhaenys would still come before him. Elia thought of her niece, Princess Arianne and Doran’s heir. If the gods willed it, then perhaps the cousins in their womanhood would be both friends and rulers; one a queen and another a princess.  
Yes, Elia would think as she would gently sing her daughter to sleep. This Dornish child might one day be a queen. But for now, Rhaenys would be “her little Rhae of sunshine”. It was a fitting name, given that Rhaenys was a child sweet and loving. She had a smile and a love that she shared freely in a way only a child could- however the little time he spent with her meant that it was not a love Aerys wanted.  
But Elia did not hate Aerys like she had hated him in that moment when he had first seen Rhaenys. She pitied him, both for rejecting love and for the man he had become.


End file.
